HANOVER – Federal findings of an underweight monkey and a live hamster
accidentally placed in a freezer overnight at Dartmouth Medical School is
raising the hackles of an Ohio-based animal rights group. The United States
Department of Agriculture conducted two inspections in 2009 at Dartmouth Medical
School, where animals are used for research.

In total, more than a dozen violations were reported between the two
inspections, one conducted in June and one in October. However, many of the
violations concerned changes in medications used for the animals that went
unreported or paperwork incorrectly filled out.

"Negligence at Dartmouth placed a living hamster in a freezer," said Michael
Budkie, executive director for the watchdog group Stop Animal Exploitation Now!
"This facility should face serious consequences." The center houses between
20,000 and 25,000 animals at the site -- 95 percent of which are rodents --that
are used for a number of different research experiments, said Jack Hoopes,
director of the comparative research and surgical labs at Dartmouth.

Because Dartmouth's labs are federally funded, it receives regular, usually
yearly, inspections by the Animal Plant Health Inspection Service, a division of
the USDA, said David Sacks, a spokesman for APHIS. The lab must conform to
Animal Wellness Act guidelines, Sacks said. He could not say whether Dartmouth
received more or less violations or whether the violations were more or less
typical than other similar institutions. A call and e-mail to the APHIS
veterinarian who conducted the inspection went unanswered. Sacks said Dartmouth
was not penalized for any of the violations.

An Oct. 29 inspection report shows in August a lab technician believed she
successfully euthanized a hamster and placed it in a carcass freezer. The next
day, other technicians discovered the hamster was still alive. The college
reported this incident to its oversight committee --Institutional Animal Care
and Use Committee -- who reported it to the government, according to the report.

Hoopes said there was "no excuse" for the error. He said the technician was a
"new hire," and had been trained in how to properly euthanize the animals, but
did not perform the procedure correctly. Since then, Hoopes said, all
euthanizing is handled by veterinarians in charge of the care of the research
animals.

The hamster was "humanely euthanized" once it was discovered alive, said
Michele Martino, assistant director at the labs and a veterinarian.

Hoopes said hundreds of rodents are euthanized a day, and he can't recall a
similar accident happening in the past.

Also among the findings were three monkeys showing signs of psychological
distress. One monkey poked at the corner of his eye, another had hair loss on
its arms and torso, while another was 15 percent lighter than his recommended
body weight, according to the inspection report. Inspectors also found the
monkeys had not been paired with each other, which is sometimes necessary for
socialization and to avoid psychological distress.

Martino, said the three monkeys displayed that behavior when they arrived at
the labs. When inspectors visited the labs in October, the monkeys were still in
the process of being acclimated to their new environment, which is why they
hadn't been paired and could explain some of the distress behaviors.

As for the underweight monkey, she said he doesn't have much of an appetite
and that researchers have experimented with different diets.

Since the inspection report, the four lab monkeys have been paired, and have
been given more toys to play with. Researchers continue to try to find different
foods the underweight monkey might like.

Martino said the monkey has since been gaining weight, but likely is just a
small monkey and will never reach his optimal weight.